Liberty University

Last week, Americans United wrote to John Koskinen, commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service, and told him that it’s high time he began enforcing the law prohibiting partisan politicking by houses of worship and other tax-exempt entities. Read more

Two memorable speeches were delivered in the early 1980s on separation of church and state. The first was by U.S. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) and was given – at all places – before an audience at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. Read more

Jerry Falwell Jr’s Liberty University has long sought to rule the town of Lynchburg, Va., and while it never quite succeeded in a full-on takeover, fundamentalists associated with the school still wield considerable influence there.

We’re just a few months removed from the 2012 elections, and the Religious Right is already hard at work trying to lure churches into partisan politics for the 2014 elections.

This week, Mat Staver’s Liberty Counsel, which is affiliated with Jerry Falwell Jr.’s Liberty University, said it is gearing up to help fundamentalists take “dominion” over the United States and make us a “Christian nation.” Read more

I’m not really a fan of professional or college sports and don’t normally look at the Sports page of the newspaper. But a recent New York Timespiece about Liberty University’s football program did catch my eye. Read more

As election season heats up, we’re sure to see an increase in the number of houses of worship intervening in partisan politics by endorsing or opposing candidates.

Churches are tax-exempt nonprofits, and most pastors know this is illegal and inappropriate. But a small percentage – often prodded and provoked by Religious Right legal groups – is determined to violate federal tax law and drag partisanship into the pulpit. Read more

It seems Liberty University Chancellor Jerry Falwell Jr. just can’t help himself when it comes to political endorsements.

At the Lynchburg, Va., school’s graduation ceremony over the weekend, Falwell made sure to say that inviting Mitt Romney, the presumptive GOP candidate for president, in no way constituted an endorsement by the tax-exempt institution. He even said nonprofits like Liberty can’t endorse candidates for office, which is exactly right.

Here’s a question for Mat Staver, head of Liberty Counsel – what do you and your organization have to hide?

Liberty Counsel is a Religious Right legal group operating from Jerry Falwell Jr.’s Liberty University. It does things like argue that the Ten Commandments should be displayed in public buildings, that all abortions should be illegal and that marriage equality should be denied to gay couples. Read more